Section 8 is a container bar in a laneway off Lonsdale Street, built from stacked shipping containers around a central outdoor courtyard. It opened in 2010 and has become a reference point for Melbourne's outdoor bar culture — one of the best examples of the city's ability to turn forgotten urban spaces into gathering places. The crowd is young and the music is good, generally leaning toward electronic and hip-hop.
The bar is entirely outdoors, so it functions best in warmer weather. In winter it can be cold; they provide heaters but you will notice the season. The beer selection includes a decent range of local craft options. It is genuinely unpretentious in a way that some of Melbourne's more design-conscious bars have lost.